


Les Miserables of Camelot

by Stories_to_be_read



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types, Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Cross Over, F/M, Gen, I really don't know what it is to be honest, M/M, Musical, just a mix of feels and songs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-24
Updated: 2014-05-11
Packaged: 2018-01-20 15:55:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 7,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1516394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stories_to_be_read/pseuds/Stories_to_be_read
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A Merlin/Les Mis crossover. How I think the songs from the Musical would fit in with the wonderful BBC Merlin. They are in no order and many do not occur in the same time line.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One Day More

**Author's Note:**

> My first ever fanfic. I wrote it last year and posted it on FF.net so now I thought I would post it on here. It is a little sad but I hope you enjoy :)
> 
>  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One Day More
> 
> A little background info. Uther has kicked himself out of his madness in time for a war with Morgana which, unbeknown to all bar Merlin is destined to be his last.
> 
> Valjean – Merlin
> 
> Marius – Arthur
> 
> -Cosset – Gwen -
> 
> Eponnie – Sir Lancelot (I know gender swap, it doesn't matter) :P
> 
> Enjolras – Uther
> 
> Javert – Morgana (again gender swap)
> 
> M. & MME. THENARDIER – Battle scavengers (I made them up for the purpose of filling a gap)
> 
> Group 1 and 2 - The Knights and Morganas men
> 
> All – All characters including knights and Morgana's men

Merlin breathed a sigh of relief; Uther had just had his men search his and Guias' chambers for a second time. Thankfully they found nothing, the stupid guards probably didn't even bother to try, they thought they 'knew' that there was nothing there but the search got Merlin thinking, someone must be onto him. That didn't matter for now and would cease to be a problem tomorrow. Uther was destined to perish in the battle under the hand of his own daughter and Merlin's magic was to be reviled. Smiling as the thought of being free of secrets filled him with glee, his face fell when he realised the implications of what tomorrow might bring upon Arthur. Trying not to think of it he got on with the jobs on the list. Humming a tuneless song he set to work with preparing his princes armour. Before long the humming escalated into a song.

"One day more!

Another day, another destiny.

This never-ending road to Calvary;

These men who seem to know my crime

Will surely come a second time.

One day more!"

Arthur stood looking wistfully out the window in the direction of Gwen's house. He had proposed to her today. Her acceptance of his proposal changed him. Suddenly he was hit with thoughts of what would happen should he die tomorrow.

"I did not live until today.

How can I live when we are parted?"

Merlin scrubbed at a particularly stubborn mark on the metal.

"One day more."

Gwen stared at the castle from her small house in the city. She desperately wanted to be with Arthur celebrating their engagement but she knew he had to prepare.

"-Tomorrow you'll be pulled away

And yet with you, my world had started!-"

Lancelot look at the band on Gwen's ring finger and realisation hit him. Arthur had proposed and obviously she had accepted. Maybe that was the cause of her happy glow. Sadly knowing he will never have her now he sang

"One more day all on my own."

Arthur and Gwen gazed in each other's directions wistfully.

"-Will we ever meet again?-"

"One more day with her not caring."

"-I was born to be with you.-"

"What a life I might have known."

"-And I swear I will be true!-"

"But she never saw me there!"

Uther stared at the knights gathered in the great hall; Arthur had now been dragged into the pep talk but looked as if he didn't want to be there. The men gave their leaders all their attention. Their mad king had recovered to lead them in to battle.

"One more day before the storm!"

Arthur's face was confused and conflicted as Uther sang.

"Do I follow where she goes?"

"At the barricades of freedom."

"Shall I join my brothers there?"

"When our ranks begin to form"

"Do I stay; and do I dare?"

"Will you take your place with me?"

At this he looked to Arthur for confirmation just as the knight chorused together.

"The time is now, the day is here!"

Merlin watched his masters conflicting emotions. What would he be like tomorrow? He would soon find out.

"One day more!"

Morgana stood at the front of her ranks, facing the city and castle she once called home. Now it was going to be destroyed. A smirk pulled at her lips as she turned to face her men. Calling them to attention she gave them a proper pep talk that would really get them going. Enhancing her voice with magic she sang loud and clear over the fields of people at her command, men and sorcerers alike turned to stare at their powerful leader.

"One more day to revolution,

We will nip it in the bud!

I will be ready for these killers

They will wet themselves with blood!"

Merlin could see them; feel their power in his veins. His own magic flooded to his fingertips ready for anything he wanted of it. He smiled and said to himself

"One day more!"

In the streets there was a group of nasty young men and women who prayed on the dying in battle. They sang together with glee at the prospect of what was to come tomorrow.

"Watch 'em run amuck,

Catch 'em as they fall,

Never know your luck

When there's a free for all,

Here a little `dip'

There a little `touch'

Most of them are goners

So they won't miss much!"

As they prepared for the battle of their lives the men of the opposing forces sang echoing eachother.

The Knights: "One day to a new beginning"

Morganas men: " Raise the flag of freedom high!"

The Knights: "Every man fight for our king"

Morganas men: "Every man will be a king"

The Knights: "There's a new world for the winning"

Morganas men: "There's a new world to be won"

Every man, woman and child looked to the castle and asked the one question for the brave men who were off to fight.

"Do you hear the people sing?"

Hearing the call of the city Arthur spun round to his father clasping forearms and singing with all his might.

"My place is here, I fight with you!"

Merlin smiled. It would be time soon, only a few hours left…

"One day more!"

Turning to each other across the packed hall that was preparing for the injured, Arthur and Gwen sang for each other.

"-I did not live until today.-"

Lancelot looked on in sadness but hid it well only letting the pain show through his voice.

One more day all on my own!

"-How can I live when we are parted?-"

As they prepared so did Morgana.

(overlapping)

I will join these people's heroes

I will follow where they go

I will learn their little Secrets,

I will know the things they know.

"One day more!" Cried Merlin as he dragged another cot into the hall.

"-Tomorrow you'll be pulled away-"

What a life I might have known!

"And yet with you my world had started!-"

(overlapping)

"One more day to revolution

We will nip it in the bud

We'll be ready for these killers…"

(overlapping)

"Watch 'em run amok

Catch 'em as they fall

Never know your luck

When there's a free-for-all!"

Then Merlin amplified his voice drowning out all others.

"Tomorrow we'll be on our way,

Tomorrow is the judgement day"

And in one last union of voices they finished their song.

"Tomorrow we'll discover

What our God in Heaven has in store!

One more dawn!

One more day!

One day more!"

The note lasted well into the night for they all knew tomorrow would be very different indeed.


	2. A Little Fall Of Rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merlin and Freya – A little fall of rain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set in the scene at the lake of Avalon.
> 
> Sorry for and Merlin/Freya feels

"No no no no no no no!" Merlin choked out as he collapsed at the edge of the lake. The blood was seeping through his fingers useless against the flow. Freya held a hand to his stilling him and catching his gaze. Merlin gripped Freya to his chest tears flowing freely down his face as he sobbed over his love. She smiled lightly trying to mask the pain and opened her mouth. Her sweet voice floated through the air around the lake whilst rain poured down from the storm grey clouds above.

"Don't you fret, My dear Merlin

I don't feel any pain,

A little fall of rain,

Can hardly hurt me now.

You're here, that's all I need to know,

And you will keep me safe,

And you will keep me close,

And rain will make the flowers grow."

Merlin cried more down the tears merging with the rain on his cheeks. With only a slight catch to his voice he replied in kind.

"But you will live, Freya - dear God above...

If I could heal your wounds with magic and love... "

She looked up into his eyes pleading with him to say no more, halting him from making promises they both know he will break. She begged with a soft voice

"Just hold me now, and let it be.

Shelter me, comfort me..."

Merlin's eyes flashed gold as he tried in vain to heal Freya. He couldn't let her go without telling her. He would have run away with her, could have healed her.

"You would live

A hundred years

If I could show you how

I won't desert you now..."

She smiled at the idea. She loved Merlin and wished she could have run with him but there was something so morbidly right about what was happening, it felt like destiny although it would break both their hearts in the process.

"The rain can't hurt me now

This rain will wash away what's past

And you will keep me safe

And you will keep me close

I'll sleep in your embrace at last."

With this line her eyes closed in a dreamlike state. Merlin gently shook her, stopping her from falling into eternal slumber just yet. She carried on from where she left off.

"The rain that brings you here

Is Heaven-blessed!

The skies begin to clear

And I'm at rest

A breath away from where you are

I've come home from so far

At this Merlin smiled sadly. She had been taken and captured from all she had known and now when she had finally found her place she would die. At her next line he echoed the notes with words of his own.

"So don't you fret, My dear Merlin" "Hush-a-bye, sweet Freya"

"I don't feel any pain" "You won't feel any pain"

"A little fall of rain" "A little fall of rain"

"Can hardly hurt me now" "Can hardly hurt you now"

"I'm here" He murmured as her eyes closed again, this time to never reopen. She still sang though, softly and sweetly.

"That's all I need to know,

And you will keep me safe" "I will stay with you"

"And you will keep me close" "Till you are sleeping"

"And rain" "And rain"

"Will make the flowers…" "Will make the flowers..."

She took in one last breath and then her chest stilled. A new surge of tears tore through Merlin but he managed to choke out the last line…

"Grow."

Whatever had kept Merlin strong when Freya was living left him as he collapsed to his knees after attempting to carry his lost love to the boat at the water's edge. Slowly his sobs died down to hiccupping and he carried her light body to the boat. With a flash of his eyes she was carried out into the middle of the lake and the boat caught alight. Flames shot into the air as the burdened boat sank below the surface.


	3. Do you hear the people sing Arthur?

Arthurs looked down as he stormed off into the woods. How could anyone possibly think that he could defeat Morgana? That he could ever be king? It was just madness! He may have drawn the sword from the stone but the doubt just settled in his mind and wouldn't leave. He couldn't do this.

Merlin frowned and followed his friend, worried about what he was going to do.

"Arthur! Arthur wait!" Merlin cried after him and started to jog as Arthurs strides lengthened. Finally catching up to him Merlin grabbed onto Arthur's shoulder effectively spinning him around. "What's wrong with you? Why did you storm off? You are not acting at all like the arrogant royal prat that I know you are."

"How Merlin? How could you possibly think that I can do this? They'll hate me for sure when they realise what a coward I have been, running from the fight. Hiding away in the woods…

"You know exactly why we had to leave you idiot! We would have been killed, and I am not letting you die on my watch. You drew the sword from the stone, how on earth could you believe that they think of you as a coward? The adore you!"

"They would be better off with Morgana as their leader. At least she has guts to fight back…"

"Ok that's a load of crap and you know it, now you need to shut up and follow me."

"Wh…"

"For once in your life just do as you are told" Snapped Merlin with surprising ferocity so Arthur obliged and followed uncertainly.

Merlin led him to the main camp of the people. Everyone was bustling about unknowingly being watched by their king.

"Merlin why the hell ha…" Arthur was stopped midsentence by a hand over his mouth. He glared at Merlin before giving in and keeping his mouth shut. Cautiously Merlin mover his hand away and when Arthur made no move to talk again he relaxed and gestured for Arthur to watch the goings on.

A young peasant boy no older then eleven was sitting on a cart in the middle of the clearing humming a strange tune. Then he opened his mouth and started to sing.

"Do you hear the people sing?

Singing the songs of angry men." Others joined him in the next lines.

"It is the music of a people

Who will not be slaves again." More joined in, linking arms and standing together in the centre of the tents and makeshift huts. They sang with smiles and pride. They wanted to help their king win the fight for their homes.

"When the beating of your heart,

Echoes the beating of the drums.

There is a new life about to start

When tomorrow comes!"

Arthur's mouth gaped open. Merlin grinned at his friends and murmured in his ear "Just wait for it…" For now an even larger crowd had gathered, stopping what they were doing to join in the singing.

"Will you join in our crusade,

Who will be strong and stand for he?

Beyond this death parade

There is a world we long to see!

So join in the fight that will give you the right to be free!"

Eyes wide he slowly moved into the clearing. He studied every single person singing. They smiled at him in turn, bowing their heads and nodding in respect, unlike when they bowed to his father out of fear and intimidation.

Merlin held his arm, giving him a look of encouragement and to the surprise of many around him, including Arthur (who didn't even know he could sing) he started the chorus again.

"Do you hear the people sing?

Singing a song of angry men?

It is the music of a people

Who will not be slaves again!

When the beating of your heart

Echoes the beating of the drums

There is a life about to start

When tomorrow comes!"

The knights had joined Merlin halfway through, their Slowly Arthur stood taller, he felt Excalibur on his hip and his friends at his side, and he had hope. But questions started to appear in his mind. Would they really do it? Would they be willing to risk it all for the sake of Camelot?

"Will you give all you can give,

So that our flag above may dance?

Some will fall and some will live

Will you stand up and take your chance?

The blood of their knights

Will water the ground of the advance!"

The people all cheered in answer to his questions. They would fight and they would win. All they wanted was for him to lead them like the true king he was. Grinning at everyone they bellowed out the last chorus.

"Do you hear the people sing?

Singing a song of angry men?

It is the music of a people

Who will not be slaves again!

When the beating of your heart

Echoes the beating of the drums

There is a life about to start

When tomorrow comes!"

With the final note Arthur realised that he was not alone. Friends and strangers alike would join the fight to put him back where he belongs. On the throne of Camelot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is one of my favourites and was actually the song that gave me the idea of doing this fanfiction. I hopped you liked it as it was a bugger to write. It took me ages to find a replacement for some of the words :)


	4. On My Own

Merlin sighed. He hated this loneliness. You would have thought after over one thousand and five hundred years he would be used to it but obviously not. Looking out over the Lake of Avalon his old man glamour faded leaving behind his young unchanged face.

  
He missed Arthur with such a burning passion. The love they had once shared and now gone for over a millennia but still warmed him a little, thinking back on it.  
Slowly he walked along the bank, eyes filling with tears and sung quietly to himself.  
  
“On my own

Pretending he's beside me

All alone

I walk until the morning”

The sky was already dark, stars shining cold and bright.

“Without him

I feel his arms around me”

Crossing his arms over his chest he imagined Arthurs strong gentle arms wrapped around his shoulders. Eyes closed he carried on moving forwards but tripped over a stone. His magic sprung out automatically and caught him before he fell but Merlin had wished it had been something a little more alive than that.

“And when I lose my way I close my eyes

And he has found me”

Tears roll down his face at the memories. When Arthur found him after being kidnapped by Morgana and all the other times they rescued one another.

“In the night the lake shines just like silver

And the air is misty as I shiver

In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight

And all I see is him and me forever and forever”

Merlin stops and looks up, in front is a glowing mirage of Arthur smiling and laughing. Merlin goes to say something but realises in time before he says anything that he isn't really there.

“And I know he’s only in my mind

That I'm talking to myself and not to him

And although I don’t know what I’ll find

Still I pray, I see him one day”

He remembers the Dragons promise. His own too. He promised himself that he would wait for Arthur and he would.

“I loved him

But once his time was over

He was gone

Our Destiny just a failure”

Their great destiny that never really happened. No freeing of magic, no great Albion. Just heartbreak and death.

“Without him

The world around me changes

The trees are bare and everywhere

The streets are full of strangers”

Merlin turned from the lake as dawn broke over the horizon. Colours lit up the sky and unbeknownst to him the lake behind started to bubble.

“I love him

But every day I'm learning

All this time

I've only been pretending

Without him

This world will go on turning

A world that's full of happiness

That I will never know!”

A figure started to rise from the lake gasping for breath. Blond head shining in the dawn light but Merlin carried on walking away, oblivious.

“I love him” He mumbled

“I love him

I love him

But I'm still on my own”

 

“Are you quite sure about that Merlin” Said a voice from behind him. He froze mid-step. That voice.

Twisting round so fast he almost fell over Merlin yelped only to be caught by solid arm round his waist. Arthur, his golden King, was smiling down at him with eyes full of the love and affection he had been missing for the past one and a half thousand years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah a happy ending to a sad song. I caught the plot bunny for this earlier today and I just had to write it and then post it as well. I hoped you liked it.


	5. Morgana's Suicide

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is AU. I wanted to make Morgana see where she went wrong and this song seemed to fit a situation like this as I would expect Merlin to be merciful even to her, even after all she had done. This is set in a war in which Arthur does not die and Mordred doesn't exist. Morgana found out the hard way just who Merlin was and there was a rather large battle between them. This tells of the aftermath of it.

Emrys stared at her weakened, crouching low to the ground. All her magic was drained and he acted as if the full blown battle they just had never happened. Slowly he stepped forward towards her, eyes cold and emotionless, body stiff with fatigue that he could no longer hide. But that brought no joy to Morgana. She was defeated and she knew it. Preparing for that final spell, the last blow to finish the job, she dropped her head. When after a few seconds she felt a warmth rush over her, looking down all the cuts and bruises on her body were bathed in a golden light. Gasping she looked up into his shimmering eyes.

When the power was drawn from her she rose. Watching the warlock warily she backed away. Suddenly as if the life was sucked out of him Emrys sagged, head dropping down. When he looked back up he was just Merlin again, just Arthur's goofy manservant and not the most powerful man to have ever lived. "Go" he said, his voice hoarse from yelling so many spells. "Go and never return. If you step one foot inside of Camelot again I won't hesitate in killing you, is that understood?"

Wordlessly nodding she backed up quicker, but obviously not quick enough. "GO!" He yelled before spinning in place and disappearing in a rush of wind.

Collapsing to the ground she looked at her feet in shock. What on earth had possessed him to free her? She had killed so many of his friends yet he had freed her. What sort of game is he playing? Drowning in confusion she started to sing.

"Who is this man?

What sort of devil is he,

To have me caught in a trap

And choose to let me go free?

It was his hour at last

To put a seal on my fate.

Wipe out the past

And wash me clean off the slate!

All it would take

Was a flick in his mind.

Vengeance was his

For the deaths of all their kind!"

She frowned and tried to leave but still more thoughts swarmed he brain. What was she to do? Could she survive in the knowledge that he had shown her such mercy? To be in his debt for ever more?

"Damned if I'll live in the debt of this man!

Damned if I'll yield at the end of the chase!

I am magic and my power's not mocked

I'll spit his pity right back in his face!

There is nothing 'tween us that was shared

It is either my life or his spared!"

No! She wouldn't allow it. He would have nothing over her. No debt would be paid, there would be no debt at all. It just wasn't possible!

"How can I now allow this man

To hold dominion over me?

This desperate man whom I have hunted

He gave me my life. He gave me freedom.

I should have perished by his hand

It was his right.

It was my right to die as well

Instead I live... but live in hell.

And my thoughts fly apart

Can this man be believed?"

At this she thought of his betrayal to their kind. His crimes were worse than hers. She would be forgiven and accepted into Albion but he had let innocent men, women and children die all for a Pendragon!

"Shall his sins be forgiven?

Shall his crimes be reprieved?"

Then she remembered how kind he had been about her magic when she first discovered it. How even now after she had torn his world apart he granted her her life. He had saved her more times than she had though possible and instead of thanking him she destroyed all he loved.

"And must I now begin to doubt,

Who never doubted all these years?

My heart is stone and still it trembles

The world I have known is lost in shadow.

Is he from heaven or from hell?

And does he know,

That granting me my life today,

This man has killed me even so?"

She saw something glint in the woods and made her way over. It was a broken sword, the tip jagged and sharp. It would be perfect. Slowly she lifted the blade by the handle and placed it over her heart. Holding it tightly she swallowed a lump in her throat. The cold evening air swirled around her as her magic woke a little, realising what she was going to do.

"I am reaching, but I fall

And the stars are black and cold

As I stare into the void

Of a world I cannot hold.

I'll escape now from that world

From the world that Merlin's won.

There is nowhere I can turn

There is no way to go on..."

And with the final note she plunged the sharp tip into her heart. With a sickening squelch it killed her. With a dull thud, the pale beauty that was Morgana Pendragon fell to the floor, never to take another breath or another life. The last though in her head was Merlin's smile, the smile that he used to give her before she betrayed them all.

 


	6. Empty Chairs At Empty Tables

It had been one hundred years to the day since everything had changed. Since all he had worked for had been for nothing, since his friends had left him. Walking through the silent and deserted halls of Camelot Merlin grieved for his loss.

"There's a grief that can't be spoken.

There's a pain goes on and on.

Empty chairs at empty tables

Now my friends are dead and gone."

Past the doors to the chambers of long dead nobles and royalty, he walked in morbid silence till he came to the throne room. Standing as sturdy as ever in the centre was the round table. Resting one hand on the table where He had sat Merlin carried on his grieving song.

"Here they talked of coming battles.

Here it was they lit the flame.

Here they spoke about `tomorrow'

And tomorrow never came."

He saw the thrones at the front of the room. Arthur had hated sitting on them and half the time insisted instead on a table that was near a window so he could watch his city whilst he worked.

"From the table by the window

You could see a world reborn

His people rose with voices ringing

I can hear them now!

The very words that they had sung

Became their last communion

On the battle field at dawn."

At this a faded image of Arthur and his knights drinking and celebrating at the table appeared in Merlin's view. Smiling Ghost Arthur turned towards Merlin and gestured for him to join. With a weak shake of his head Merlin turned away. He couldn't bear to see it, even in his imagination and after a century it still hurt to even think of them. How he was still alive and they had all passed on. Running from the room he called out to the long dead.

"Oh my friends, my friends forgive me,

That I live and you are gone.

There's a grief that can't be spoken.

There's a pain goes on and on."

Without realising he had ended up at the doors to Arthur's old chambers. With a flash of his eyes the door opened. The room was undisturbed even after all this time. He had put a spell on it to protect everything and so far it seemed to be working. Again a ghost Arthur appeared standing by the window, the heavy rich drapes pulled to one side, watching over his kingdom with a thoughtful look. Then Gwen appeared to Merlin's left and walked over to her husband hugging him from behind. Arthur turned with a loving smile and just as the pair kissed they faded.

Tears were running freely down Merlin's face, all that he has lost coming back to him in a rush. Quietly he whispered to himself the next verse.

"Phantom faces at the window.

Phantom shadows on the floor.

Empty chairs at empty tables

Where my friends will meet no more."

Leaving the castle as quickly as possible he bellowed out the last verse. Choking on his tears in the process.

"Oh my friends, my friends, don't ask me

What your sacrifice was for.

Empty chairs at empty tables

Where my friends will meet no more."

Running through what was left of the once great city; Merlin wiped the tears from his face, the last of his words still echoing across the fields. Clambering on his horse he concluded that this was the worst idea he had had in over fifty years and that he would never do it again.


	7. A Heart Full Of Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is not my favourite but I thought I would post it anyway. Enjoy!

Lancelot and Arthur snuck through the forest. Arthur looked over at his friends conflicted face, he wanted to say something to lighten up the mood but nothing could distract him from the anticipation of seeing his love, not even whatever was eating at Lancelot.

Then he saw her. Like a beacon of light in the darkness, waiting patiently for him. Arthur smiled at Lancelot in thanks before making his way over. Once he entered the clearing he started to sing.

"A heart full of love

A heart full of song"

At the soft smile she gave him, he stumbled over his words. What was he doing? Stumbling down on one knee he offered a hand for her to take.

"I'm doing everything all wrong

Oh God, for shame

I am so glad that you came

Dear Gwenivire

What you say?

Will I hear?"

At this he held her hands and stared lovingly into her eyes. So full of love and hope, he wanted her to be his truly and eternally and he hope that his look conveyed that message. She bit her lip, still smiling and answered his unspoken words with her own sweet voice.

"A heart full of love

No fear, no regret"

"My heart, only for you can it beat"

"And mine's beset"

At her words Arthur looked shocked. She had said yes.

"Oh Gwen, I don't know what to say"

Smiling bashfully as his exclamation she hushed him.

"Then make no sound"

Staring at her wide eyed he sat frozen. He didn't know what to do, what to say, he was lost.

"I am lost"

I am found!

At these words he stood and picked her up, spinning in a circle. She laughed with delight and as he started to sing again she watched him intently.

"A heart full of light"

"A night bright as day"

"And you must never go away

"Oh Gwen, my dear Gwen"

"This is a chain we'll never break"

"Do I dream?"

"I'm awake!"

Arthur started to sing again as Lancelot watched on with tears in his eyes. Realisation had dawned on him. She was always going to be Arthur's, never his and now she was truly lost to him.

"A heart full of love" "She was never mine to lose"

Sang Lancelot sorrowfully over Arthur's words to Gwen.

"A heart full of you" "Why regret what could not be?"

At Gwen's reply the tears started streaming down his face and his words choked up.

"A single look and then I knew." "These are words she'll never say"

"I knew it too." "Not to me..."

"From today..." "Not to me...

"Every day" "Not for me...

"For it isn't a dream" "Her heart full of love"

"Not a dream" "She will never"

"After all!" "Feel this way..."

Pain spread through his heart at their last words. He had never felt like this for anyone and now the one person that he had loved was no longer within reach. As the now engaged couple walked to the other edge of the clearing to sit, Lancelot looked away berating himself for watching the happy couple and upsetting himself even more. Turning around he stumbled back to the city and into the nearest tavern to drown his sorrows and try to forget the aching in his heart.

If, when the couple returned to the city, they saw a familiar head being thrown out the tavern with his face covered in tears they didn't mention it.


	8. I Dreamed A Dream

She had been thrown away like an old rag. She knew that she had done wrong, that she had done something unforgiveable. But fake Lancelot -aka Morgana- had tricked her, enchanted her and used her as a prawn in her little games with Arthur. She couldn't believe that no one had believed her, nothing would ever be the same again. Everyone had heard, they all knew and had been stabbing cruel words at her. She had struggled to find anywhere to sleep. In the end she had curled up in a blanket the Merlin had given her and tried to sleep in the forest outskirts. Choking on her tears of remorse she sang quietly to herself.

"There was a time when they were kind

When their voices were soft

And their words not biting."

Arthur stared out the window face emotionless and body unmoving. His mind was still ringing with his fiancé's betrayal. How could he have been so blind, so blind to something so obvious? His love had blinded him from the things he didn't want to accept and now all of that had been thrust upon him. Tears leaked out the corner of his eyes as he whispered a few heartfelt words to himself.

"There was a time when love was blind

And the world was a song,

And the song was exciting."

Merlin watched his broken friend. Why had this happened? Dam Morgana and her schemes! She had just ruined something that he had been working so hard to bring to life and now it had all gone to ruin. Everything he had worked for turned to dust. Never would there be the Once and Future King without his Queen who was at this moment out in the forest somewhere all alone. He had been forced not to follow her. Sadly he sang as he made his way from the King's chambers to his own.

"There was a time…

Then it all went wrong."

He sang louder as he entered the room, Guias was on his evening rounds so Merlin was alone. Everything he had dreamed, everything that he had wished for, all gone in a moments weakness. He had been full of hope and faith in destiny but it seemed that destiny was wrong.

"I dreamed a dream in time gone by

When hope was high

And life worth living."

Gwen looked up at the stars hanging over Camelot, her beloved home where she was no longer allowed to be. She cried out her words to the heavens, blaming them for the darkness that had fallen over her life. She told them her dreams, everything she believed in, with tears still cascading down her face.

"I dreamed that love would never die

I dreamed you Gods would be forgiving!"

Arthur was remembering his falling for Gwen. Back when he had barely been a Prince let alone a King. How young he had been, how careless, and now look at where that carelessness had lead. Now he moved from the window and instead glared at his reflection in the mirror on the far side of his chambers.

"Then I was young and unafraid

And dreams were made and used and wasted.

There was no ransom to be paid

No song unsung, no wine untasted."

Merlin's eyes hardened as he recalled the look of dark joy on Morgana's face. His magic whipped and lashed under his skin at the thought of what that creature –for no woman could be so cruel and truly evil to someone who had only ever been kind to them- had done to his friends.

"But the tigers come at night

With their voices black as thunder."

Gwen gazed at the light slowly going out in the windows. She imagined what Morgana was thinking of this, of what she had done. Knowing what she had become she was probably enjoying Gwen's pain. Any hope she had had of a fair world ruled by Arthur alongside her at his side was gone, ripped apart by the evil witch.

"As they tear your hope apart."

Everything that he had dreamed of, believed would come, was gone in the blink of an eye and a foolish point of weakness. Arthur had lost his dream.

"As they turn your dream to shame."

Arthur daydreamed of their time together, the months of happiness and bliss. The thoughts of the freedom they had had in their little secret which they had finally been able to show to the world.

"She slept the summer by my side."

Gwen recalled the thoughts and feelings she had always had when she was around Arthur. How he had made he feel when they had had a secret picnic in the forest.

"He filled my days with endless wonder."

Then she recalled the fake Lancelot. How could she have fallen for it? The real Lancelot had respected the relationship between her and Arthur, maybe even encouraged it against his true feelings. She had liked him, really liked him, and maybe if Arthur hadn't got there first she could have loved him. But the fake Lancelot had taken advantage of her!

"He took my kindness in his stride!

But he was gone when real life came."

Arthur just wished it was all a dream. That in a minute Gwen would be lying next to him and soothing him as he recovered from his nightmare but it was not to be. This hurt far too much. The life he had wished for could never be. But still he hoped.

"And still I dream she'll come to me

That we will live the years together"

Gwen had dreamed of being at Arthur's side. Ruling the land and being loved by the people. She dreamed of seeing her father again in Avalon was gone for now surely she would go to hell for her crimes. She would never be able to help Arthur through the impending death of Uther.

"But there are dreams that cannot be

And there are storms we cannot weather"

Everything Merlin had tried to create and help grow was gone. Now destiny would never come to pass. Merlin would never be able to show who he really was, Arthur would never become the Once and Future King and Gwen would never see Camelot again. It should have all been so different!

"I had a dream my life would be

So different from this hell I'm living

So different now from what it seemed!"

They all spoke with choked voices ringing in the dark night. Their dreams would never be and their lives would forever change from that one point of weakness that had been shown to the world.

"Now life has killed the dream, I dreamed."

Merlin slammed his face into the pillow, Arthur collapsed on to his bed and Gwen closed her eyes to the night.


	9. Who Am I?

They had been searching for him for days now. Well when he says him he meant Emrys. Arthur had been told by the druid that had saved him from a nasty piece of work, also known as a vampire, and it had lead to Arthur going on a man hunt. When asked why the druid had saved Arthur, he had said that he saw the attack in a vision and knew somehow that 'Emrys' would be in some way occupied and unable to save him. When asked who Emrys was the druid looked shocked and was about to point out Merlin when Merlin butted in and explained the prophecy to Arthur. The Once and Future King and his protector warlock Emrys blah, blah, blah… supposedly forgetting to tell Arthur that Emrys was in fact standing in front of him.

Suddenly there was a yell from the courtyard. Someone had found Emrys. But that wasn't possible, merlin had to investigate this fake Emrys and convince Arthur that it wasn't him. Merlin couldn't let some pretender take his place whether in punishment or reward (for he still didn't know what Arthur wanted with Emrys).

"They think that man is me

They 'knew' him at a glance!

That stranger he has found

This man could be my chance!"

He could see it now, this imposter getting all the credit or the death sentence whichever one Arthur decided on. But no, he could not knowingly let anyone take his place. This was his crime, his deceit and he should take it. Shouldn't he? After all he had done to get this far only to be killed by his Once and Future King, for he was sure that Arthur would be livid.

"Why should I show myself?

Why might I right this wrong

When I have come so far

And struggled for so long?

If I speak, I am condemned.

If I stay silent, I am damned!"

But the Druids! He couldn't desert them now, after all their years in hiding. He was so close to that goal but if he reveeled himself to Arthur when magic was still outlawed what would happen to them?

"I am the master of hundreds of druids.

They all look to me.

How can I abandon them?

How would magic return

If I cannot be?

If I speak, I am condemned.

If I stay silent, I am damned!"

What could he do? He had to lead, had to show them who he was. But what about the aftermath, what happens, when he no longer lives, to Camelot? And to the Druids?

"Who am I?

Can I condemn my kin to captivity?

Pretend I do not feel their agony.

These innocents who bear a trace

Who go to judgement in my place?

Who am I?

Can I conceal myself for evermore?

Pretend I'm not the man I was before?

And must my name until I die

Be no more than an alibi?"

He couldn't keep it any more. This secret was going to destroy him.

"Must I lie?"

But his friends, the Knights, Gwen… Arthur… it would destroy them. No, no more lies.

"How can I ever face my fellow men?

How can I ever face myself again?

My soul belongs to fate, I know

They made that bargain long ago

It gave me hope when hope was gone

It gave me strength to journey on"

It was now or never. Charging out of the room he ran as fast as humanly possible to the Throne Room (possibly with a little magic to stop himself from falling). He halted at the doors, whispering to himself.

"Who am I? Who am I?"

Realisation hit him.

"I am Emrys!"

Throwing the doors wide he charged into the room. Then standing in front of the King he raised his arms calling a huge ribbon of gold to flash out of each hand and meet above his head. It merged into a dragon in flight that swooped down over the heads of the crowed and flipped over before it hit the end wall. Turning back on its self the dragon headed straight for Arthur. The King tensed for a split second before the beautiful beast dove and disappeared into the floor at his feet.

Merlin looked his king in the eye and with a magic enhanced voice he sang the last notes of his song.

"And so Arthur, you see it's true

That man bears no more guilt than you!

Who am I?

I AM EM-ER-YS!"

The crowd gapped and a hush rushed across the hall. The framed man still sat in his robes and fake beard (did Arthur really believe that?) shock written across his face. But Arthur was the person that Merlin was staring at. His jaw was slack from the bright display of magic that had just been performed by none other than his manservant. The idiot boy from Eldor that had become his best friend.

The King went to say something just as the doors rattled and slammed open with a magical force (even more dramatically than Merlin's entrance). The caster of the spell walked confidently up to the centre of the hall. No sign of Merlin's display was left and the false Emrys was still in chains on the floor at the king's feet with merlin to his left. Every head was turned towards the intruder of such a dramatic moment.

Said intruder just gave everyone a smirk before blinking at the king sweetly (or as sweetly as she gets). "Hello Brother dear. What's this about finding my dear buddy Emrys?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter unless the plot monsters attack.  
> As mentioned before no beta and if you spot any mistakes feel free to comment. I hoped you enjoyed it and thank you for reading.


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